Some question about friends

1. Is there a limit to the number of friends one can have (here on 30BaD)?

2. Is it considered acceptable behavior to try and make as many friends as possible?

[The reason why I ask this is because by having more friends I can call the attention of a greater number of people to AR issues. But on the other hand, the notion of friend becomes less that of a true friend and more that of a 'facebook' impersonal friend]

Replies to This Discussion

It is a different world for sure with all the technological "friends" out there. On Facebook, at least in my experience, people "friend" me who I either barely know, or who I may have just met. Turns out some of them seem to just want a high "friend" number while others may have an "agenda" of some sort - either they are selling something, or they want to market their business services, etc.

I think this site is different... while I haven't been a very strong participant (I'm a lurker) on this site, I believe in the lifestyle and I think that's true of most people who are members here. The very nature that we all share something in common makes us all "friends" in a way... or at least, it should... don't you think? Making it official by friending someone on this site is just a formality... imo :-)

But, I see why you're asking... everyone probably has a different opinion on friend status and when it is appropriate, etc. I think if your motivation is genuine it will shine through!

There is a HUGE difference between friends on this site and Facebook. 90% or more of most peoples friend lists on Facebook are just aquaintences; These individuals know very little about you and you share maybe 1 or 2 memories that may or may not be forgotten in the future depending on the importance. The other 10% of your friend list are what friends and family you have left over that you have a genuine connection with, believe in you and are there for you no matter what. They're the honest people in your life.

On this site it is a little different. You may not ever meet these people in your entire life, however, we all (for the most part) have the same common goals. To promote health, love, happiness, and support. The biggest and sometimes the hardest part of life is to locate and surround yourself with like minded people. This site does that very thing. So even if a so called "friend whore" asks to be my friend I accept it, just because I know that we share a common goal in life....80/10/10 vegan health!

I accept anyone who adds me as a friend on this site, which is something I would NEVER do on Facebook.

I find people on here more honest and genuine than people on Facebook. Plus, we all have something in a common: we all are, or have a desire to be, vegan, and we all love fruit more than any other people. Vegans alone are rare in modern society, and 811-ers even rarer. So, it's nice to have 'friends' to discuss and vent about our lifestyle choices.

Also, the more friends on this site, the more support. I found that when my 30BaD friends share advice or experience, I'm more motivation than ever.

acquiring friends for the purpose of ar activism is perfectly legitimate on 30bad!

however, there are 2 things you should be aware of:

you can send messages to only 200 (i just found out recently since i'm over the limit). ning probably put this restriction in so people were discouraged from playing the spam game.

many of the friends you will acquire will not be interested in ar activism. in fact, that's one reason why freelee started the speak up for animals category - she wanted to give people a better reason than just weight loss to go vegan.

so given these issues, it is best to go for quality than quantity, imho.

also, as you know, i do most of my work through my arissues elist. so when i acquire a new friend i tell them about it and many of them sign up. that way i by-pass the ning limitations by moving off ning.

i think the way you ask others to support a cause and the sincerity of your words may inspire your friends to ask their friends to participate. such a mechanism is very powerful providing serious leverage as attested to by the excellent level of activity in your thread:

for the record, i have never asked anyone to be a friend here - i'm an unsociable recluse. my 203 have come from people who have asked me because they possibly liked my posts, though, more likely were impressed by my undeniably attractive horns.

Again, to keep momentum both in the group and in the discussions, follow up on people's responses. This will show you who is interested and who your potential real friends are as well as keeping discussions alive and well.

Another idea is to start your blog here with an AR theme. Sometimes it is not only important to know what the issues are, but why those issues are important, how to go about it, and what to do about it.